MINNEAPOLIMEDIA NEWS | Attorney General Ellison Launches Crackdown on Suspected Human Trafficking Operations Linked to Illicit Massage Businesses

ST. PAUL, MN (May 13, 2026) Keith Ellison has announced a new statewide enforcement initiative targeting suspected human trafficking operations connected to illicit massage businesses across the Twin Cities metropolitan area.

The initiative, unveiled Tuesday by the Minnesota Attorney General’s Office, focuses on disrupting suspected trafficking networks by targeting the commercial properties where authorities believe illegal operations may be occurring.

As part of the effort, the Attorney General’s Office sent formal warning letters to nine commercial landlords in the Minneapolis-Saint Paul region notifying them that businesses operating on their properties may be linked to commercial sex trafficking and prostitution-related activity.

State officials described the approach as a “landlord engagement” strategy intended to pressure property owners to take action against suspected illegal operations occurring within leased commercial spaces.

According to the Attorney General’s Office, landlords have been given 10 business days to respond and identify steps being taken to ensure illegal activity is stopped. The letters also warn property owners about potential legal consequences tied to knowingly allowing criminal activity to continue on their premises.

Under Minnesota law, landlords may have authority to terminate leases involving prostitution-related criminal activity or public nuisance violations connected to commercial tenants.

The Attorney General’s Office said the initiative is being conducted in coordination with local law enforcement agencies, the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension Human Trafficking Investigators Task Force, and The Network, a nonprofit organization focused on combating trafficking connected to the illicit massage industry.

Investigators said the enforcement strategy is designed to dismantle the business infrastructure used by traffickers rather than focusing enforcement efforts on women believed to be victims of exploitation.

Ellison’s office stated that the primary targets of the initiative are traffickers, organized criminal operators, and individuals purchasing commercial sex.

Authorities said illicit massage businesses, commonly referred to by investigators as IMBs, remain a significant focus of anti-trafficking investigations nationwide because some operations are suspected of functioning as fronts for organized sex trafficking, labor trafficking, debt coercion, and commercial sexual exploitation.

According to federal and nonprofit anti-trafficking assessments, many trafficking victims connected to illicit massage businesses are vulnerable women who may face immigration-related coercion, financial manipulation, threats, confiscation of identification documents, restricted movement, or debt bondage that limits their ability to leave exploitative situations.

Officials said investigators identified the nine metro-area locations through coordinated intelligence gathering, law enforcement investigations, and data analysis that included monitoring online commercial sex review forums frequently used by sex buyers.

The Attorney General’s Office also released several indicators commonly associated with suspected illicit massage operations, including businesses requiring customers to be buzzed into secured entrances, extensive external surveillance camera systems, permanently covered windows, unusually late operating hours, evidence of workers living inside commercial spaces, and customer traffic patterns involving predominantly male clientele arriving for short visits.

The Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension Human Trafficking Investigators Task Force is providing investigative and intelligence support for the operation, while local law enforcement agencies continue efforts to identify suspected traffickers and sex buyers connected to the businesses under review.

Authorities emphasized that the investigation remains ongoing and that no criminal charges connected to the nine properties had been publicly announced as of Wednesday.

The Attorney General’s Office encouraged landlords, business operators, and members of the public to report suspected trafficking activity to law enforcement authorities.

Officials directed tips involving suspected human trafficking to the Minnesota BCA tip line at 1-877-996-6222 or by email at bca.tips@state.mn.us. Reports may also be submitted through the National Human Trafficking Hotline at 1-888-373-7888.

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